9th National Forum Annual Meeting Report

Executive Summary

Since the National Forum for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention was established in 2003, more than 175 diverse national and international organizations in heart disease and stroke prevention—from public health and healthcare practice, academia, faith-based, advocacy and community organizations—have participated in advancing the  recommendations of A Public Health Action Plan to Prevent Heart Disease (Action Plan). Members of the National Forum come together each year to renew their commitment to creating a heart healthy and stroke free society and plan for the year ahead.
 
The theme of this year’s meeting – the 9th National Forum – was Transforming Leadership, Policy and Practice: A Partnership of Leaders. The 9th National Forum energized heart disease and stroke prevention leaders at all levels to determine their critical roles in preventing heart disease and stroke more effectively, collectively, and with impact and purpose moving forward.
 
Specifically, the goals of the 9th National Forum were to:

• Cultivate a community of leaders across National Forum Members
• Build common knowledge of the specific 2020 Goal and Strategic Priorities of the National Forum and the roles that Members will play in implementation
• Leverage the strengths of National Forum Members to advance policy issues that promote cardiovascular health

In the opening plenary, Implementing the National Forum Strategic Priorities through Leadership and Collaboration, the National Forum announced its goal for 2020 and the three strategic priorities that will help us reach the goal.
 
National Forum’s 2020 Goal:  Heart disease and stroke will no longer be the leading cause of death for all Americans by 2020.
 
National Forum’s Strategic Priorities:

• Have in place a comprehensive cardiovascular surveillance system to prevent and manage heart disease and stroke by 2020.
• Achieve health equity and eliminate cardiovascular disparities via implementation of population-based interventions by 2020.
• Reduce daily sodium intake in the general population to 1500mg by 2020.

Additional Plenary Sessions at the 9th National Forum included:

• U.S. Dietary Guidelines 
• The ABCS of Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention 
• The Value of Prevention 
• Institute of Medicine (IOM) Report on Surveillance 
• Taking Action Toward 2020

Concurrent sessions at the 9th National Forum included:

• National Forum’s Strategic Priorities Input Sessions.
• Concurrent Session Three will give attendees the opportunity to select one of four sessions:
  • Clinical Practice Guidelines for Heart Disease and Stroke Prevention: Hypertension, Cholesterol, and Obesity
  • The World Mobilizes for Non-Communicable Disease Prevention: The NCD Alliance and UN Summit
  • National Trends in Total CVD Mortality Data: Why the Rates are Falling and Where Might We be in 2020?
  • Leadership in Action - Communities of Practice

The 9th National Forum was presented in partnership with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) and was sponsored by Janssen Pharmaceuticals Companies of Johnson & Johnson (Platinum Sponsor), Daiichi-Sankyo (Silver Sponsor), and the American Heart Association (Networking Reception).
 
The 9th National Forum provided a look forward for leaders at all levels in the fight against heart disease and stroke. As captured in the post-meeting evaluation, the 9th National Forum was successful in educating and providing networking and collaboration opportunities to the more than 130 participants from more than 50 organizations who participated.
 
To access the Program Book, click here.